organisational culture!

; aj Thomson

Raj Thomson is ttie editor of

Human Resources magazine.

radical
needed in workplaces
'"'•:^W^!?^^^mr'':^':r:'''^''^Ap' a Senior Administrative Law Judge for
California's Public Employment Relations
Board (PERBI for 25 years.
Now retired from the bar, Tamm is an
adjunct law professor, an author and an
expert in building collaborative workplace
environments. He has worked in private
industry {General Electric Company),
the public sector (NASA and the United
Nations) and his training material has been
translated into eight languages.
Tamm, who has visited New Zealand
question is, do you defend yourself by twice this year on speaking tours

I
t's Monday moming in the middle of
winter, the sun is just rising, but with
every passing minute the rush-hour
traffic is already mounting. You off-load the
kids with grandma before school and feel
like you still need another eight hours sleep-
After avoiding a kamikaze pedestrian
while trying to park, you stagger into the
lift at work and wonder what the day will
hold. It's just after 9am and as you wrestle
your coat off, the office 'clockwatchers'
smirk at each other.
Armed with what feels like your first hot
coffee in a week, you fire up your workstation
while wondering for a nano second if work-
life balance really exists and what it might feel
like. You take a deep breath and begin the
daily ritual of clearing your email.
But just when you thought you might be
through the worst the day has in store for
you, you catch an expression on the face
of your boss that sends shivers down your
spine. Someone is about to be read the riot
act and you prey it's the person down the halt.
When you started this job almost a year
ago, the enthusiasm, the spunk, the future
all seemed rosy. Nowadays 5pm couldn't
roll around soon enough. The optimism
and camaraderie that once held the office
together has long given way to frustration,
laziness and an overriding selfishness
among the staff.
The battle lines are well established, and
like bloodied prize-fighters glaring at each
other between rounds, the two office 'fronts'
wait in their 'foxholes' for the next skirnnish.
It's World War III and not even lunchtimeyet!
Whatever side you take, you know
that some damage is inevitable. The real
1 _.
throwing the odd bombshell back, or do
you duck and cover?
The entrenched and divided workplace
is no new-age problem though, as former
California Labour Court Judge turned
business consultant Jim Tamm has
witnessed in his almost four decades as
an observer and commentator of industrial
relations conflict resolution.
"The key to minimising conflict in the
workplace and maximising productivity is
to not become defensive, but that's easier
said than done. People react differently
and the reaction can be like pouring fuel on
an already volatile situation/'
And Tamm should know. He holds
what some might consider the unenviable
accolade of presiding over more US-school
When we get defensive, we're not defending
ourselves from other people, we're defending
ourselves from painful feelings that we
don't want to feel.
labour strikes than anyone else in the
country's judiciary.
Add to that the 'voice of reason' on
2000 employment dispute mediation
sessions and you soon understand how
Tamm's legal decisions have become
enshrined in US labour policies.
Tamm received his law degree from
Santa Clara University in 1975, and was
the San Francisco Regional Director and
organised by Hamilton-based HR
consultancy the Effect says avoiding
defensiveness is paramount.
"Staying non-defensive is the single
most important thing that an individual
can do to be more effective when they're
trying to either build relationships or
resolve conflict in the workplace."
Tamm's latest book, Radical
Collaboration, highlights what he calls the
"green" and "red" zones (green being a
supportive, congenial workplace and red,
the complete opposite).
"A 'red zone' organisation has much
more caustic, combative, adversarial, and
hostile working relationships."
To navigate through conflict and build a
healthier green zone organisation, Tamm
says defensiveness must be controlled.
"When we get defensive, we're not
defending ourselves from other people,
we're defending ourselves from painful
feelings that we don't want to feel."
He says these fears are based around
our own feelings about our significance,
competence and ability to fit into workplaces.
"If someone in your office feels
insignificant or incompetent and it's hurtirtg
them, they are likely to be critical of other
people so they don't have to focus on
themselves."
Tamm was quick to point out that
with New Zealand's labour-focussed
employment laws, reducing conflict in
local workplaces was imperative.
"An employee that is not doing what
they are supposed to do, is incapable of
working with other staff and can't easily
be let go is really going to exacerbate the
dysfunctional relationship."
In a country overflowing with SMEs,
staff have to try to fit in to meet the needs
of different people. However, he stresses
that it is our differences that can make the
workplace a lot more destructive,
"If you have, say, 10 people in your
workplace and you sideline one because
they are too combative and don't get along
with the other employees, you've effectively
lost lOpercent of your workforce."
By creating an early waming system
that tips employees off when they are
getting defensive, line managers can buy
time to come up with an action plan. Staff
understanding what their behaviour is
about when they get defensive is a step in
the right direction.
Tamm says that most labour disputes
are not actually about employment
issues but rather relationship issues. Our
defensive mechanisms are often to blame.
"What you have is a whole bunch of
people who are feeling very combative
and trying to beat each other rather than
focussing on getting their underlying
The Research
Radical Collaboration is based on
research that documents dramatic
improvements in both individual skills
and organisational culture.
From data supplied by the State
of California Public Employment
Relations Board:
Almost 100 organisations reduced their
conflict by an average rate of 67 percent.
The ten most troubled organisations at
the start of the project reduced their
conflict by an average rate of 85 percent
over three years.
Research conducted by Professor
Mayte Barba, a director of Business
Administration Studies at Universidad
Tec de Monterrey in Cuernavaca,
Mexico, showed:
Over a six year period, individuals from
nine countries reported they reduced
Their own defensiveness in conflicts by
interests met.
"People are realising how cnjcial it is
that they be skilful in building collaboration
because it's just impossible to thrive
today if you don't have good collaborative
relationship skills." •
half and were 45 percent more effective
at getting their interests met in conflicts
using the skills in the Radical Collaboration
programme. Participants also reported
significant gains in their ability to build and
maintain climates of trust.
Research conducted at the University
of California, Berkeley Institute of
Industrial Relations showed:
Prior to the training 70 percent of
participants characterised their working
relationship as adversarial. After 16
months, less than one percent said it was
adversarial. Fifty seven percent said their
working relationship was unproductive,
after the training 87 percent said their
working relationships was productive.
Individuals also reported significant gains
in raising trust levels and reducing
the impact of adversarial attitudes in
relationships.

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